Just a Pair of Demon Hunters
by amaayasha
Summary: In this line of work, it's best to not make too many friends. And when you do, you tend to be weary. But friendship is something to be treasured, and then next thing you know, you're closer to this person than you ever planned on it. Sango didn't plan on becoming friends with a half-demon, but she did. And couldn't bring herself to regret it. Written for Inuvember 2k14


The first time she met him, he saved her life.

Kagome was rooms away, and couldn't come on time to help when she screamed for help after Hirakotsu was knocked out of her hands. Instead of the priestess she was expecting, it was a silver-haired, dog-eared hanyou.

"Duck!" the man ordered, and for some reason, she did. Glancing up, she saw a slash of a sword, cutting the demon that was after her.

"Come on, move it!" The guy grabbed her arm and hauled her to her feet.

"But - my weapon!" she protested, glancing behind at the withering demon. "And-"

"Get it later!" He didn't give her time to argue before pulling her along, guiding her out of the warehouse. Going outside, Kagome ran to her. "You're okay! I'm so glad!"

"Kagome!"

"This is your friend you were worrying about?" There was another man - a monk with indigo eyes and staff - looking at her curiously.

"Who are you? Never mind, where's Kirara? Did she come out here?" Sango asked anxiously.

"No," Kagome shook her head, biting her lip nervously. "She's still in there?"

"Another member of your team?" the monk asked.

"My nekomata," she answered, biting her lip. She really needed to break this habit. "She went after my weapon-"

"I'll go get her. Miroku, make sure those two stay here!" The hanyou ran back inside, still clutching his sword, which was the size of his chest. _How does that fit in that tiny sheath?_

"Don't worry, Inuyasha will get your nekomata back," the monk - Miroku - soothed the girls.

"Who are you?" Kagome wondered. As Miroku began to answer her questions, Sango kept her eyes at where Inuyasha had left.

 _I hope Kirara's okay. This is all my fault for being so distracted. Dammit!_

"Sango, I'm sure they'll be fine," Kagome put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Have faith!"

"I-"

A giant crash, and Inuyasha appeared above them, having jumped out a window on the second floor of the warehouse.

"Look out!" he yelled at them, one arm holding a kitten, his free hand holding Hirakotsu. The humans moved out of the way as he controlled his fall to land easily and gracefully.

"Kirara!" Sango rushed forward, stopping slowly as she realized with confusion that her nekomata was too busy pawing at Inuyasha, licking his arm.

"Quit it," Inuyasha said gruffly. "My arm's fine."

"Is something wrong with your arm?" The ever-helpful Kagome ran over to the hanyou, studying his arm Kirara kept licking.

"Feh! Just a scratch that the nekomata thinks is serious," he snapped, walking over to Sango and giving her Kirara and her boomerang. "We're done here. Let's go, Miroku."

###

How did "Let's go, Miroku" translate to "let's leave together and end up working together as one team"?

Sango didn't know how to feel about that. The two men were good fighters and hunters, but Miroku was a lech that just couldn't keep his hands to himself and it was annoying to be on guard from a _teammate_ of all things.

And Inuyasha…Inuyasha made her uneasy.

The 'half-demon' part didn't bother her. The 'he's kinda like me' part did.

He preferred action over words, didn't trust anyone immediately, was an extremely good fighter, and had a temper. If that didn't describe her too then she'd be damned. But he was rude! And selfish! How can a guy like that be like her?

But…

Kirara liked him. And Kirara had excellent judge of character.

"Oi, Sango."

Sango jumped, turning around. "Yeah?"

Inuyasha stood there, staring at her with his amber eyes. She had stayed at the motel while the others went for dinner, and she was looking out the window, stroking Kirara's fur. _Where are the others?_

"…Miroku and Kagome are still at the restaurant," he answered without her saying anything, a scowl slowly appearing on his face. "I brought you dinner." He put down a plastic bag on top of one of the beds. Mumbling her thanks, she grabbed it curiously, opening it.

A burger with no sauce and pickles, fries with barbecue sauce to the side, and a Mountain Dew in a can.

Sango knew this order.

"Inuyasha, this is _your_ order," she said slowly "I can't-"

"I don't need the food," he said gruffly. "You need it more than I do." And with a scratch under Kirara's chin, he left as quietly as he came.

Sango was left with a beating heart and a flushed face. _Did he just…do something nice for me?_

###

Sango let out a breath of air, cracking her knuckles once before going for the offensive, throwing punches and quick kicks to try and get him off balance. He dodged or blocked most of them, but she managed to get a few hits on him. Finally she was swiped under her feet, causing her to fall, and her opponent quickly went to jab the pressure point on her neck, but her own hand shoot out to jab _his_ pressure point, her free hand grabbing his wrist, not noticing he did the same to her.

"Tie?" Inuyasha offered, and she nodded tiredly. The hanyou stood up and offered a hand, waiting for her to take it before hoisting her up to her feet.

"That was a hard one," Sango huffed. "Being offense is last for me in hunting, I'm not used to being so for so long."

"We need to work on that more, then." Inuyasha tossed her a towel, using his own towel to wipe his forehead. Kirara meowed, climbing his body to rest on his shoulders. Sango was still confused as to what made Kirara like Inuyasha so much, but she shrugged it off.

"When did you get so good at defense, anyways? You seem incapable of it in fights," Sango teased. After training so much together in the morning, she had found Inuyasha to be helpful and a good instructor. Nevertheless, he was still hiding things, not just from her but Kagome.

That's okay, thought. She was hiding secrets, too.

"Keh. Just 'cause I don't like doing it doesn't mean I can't _do_ it." Inuyasha didn't seem to want to say more than that, so she left it be.

Wordlessly, Sango tossed him a bagel and they ate in comfortable silence as they waited for Miroku and Kagome to wake up.

Sango didn't question when their friendship had moved from teammates that just barely trusted each other, to friends that could.

###

"Dammit!" Inuyasha pounded on the barrier. "Don't do anything to Kagome! You can't do what you did to Amaya to her!" Inuyasha let out a hybrid of a yell and a growl. "Don't touch her!"

"Inuyasha!" Sango grabbed his arm. "Your guts will spill out if you continue! We can't do anything for her right now! Miroku's our only chance."

He gritted his teeth, but a transformed Kirara nudged his side and he collapsed against the nekomata, letting Kirara lower him to the ground and leaning against her.

"…no…" Inuyasha was shaking, not noticeable unless you knew him well enough to see it. "Not her, not again, not her…"

"Inuyasha?" Sango put a hand on his arm. "I need to tend your wound, okay?"

He didn't answer, letting her take his jacket off with his shirt. Sango swallowed, the sight of such an injury on her friend making her feel dread inside.

 _No. Inuyasha's strong. He'll survive…he has to!_

Using his shirt, Sango did her best to wipe his blood off and wrap his injuries in it, tight enough to keep the blood in. Hopefully.

"…you're not going to blame me for letting them take Kagome?" he finally spoke, head down, not letting her see his eyes.

"Of course not!" Sango stared at him, in shock. "We were outnumbered and caught him off guard. I _know_ you would never let Kagome be taken." Flashes of the two talking quietly to each other, small lingering touches, and jealousy towards others coming to her mind. She _knew_ something was going on between them, but thought it better to only question Kagome. Inuyasha would never talk to Sango again if she were to do more then tease, and she _liked_ Inuyasha and the comfort he provided. Especially once she told him about Kohaku.

 _Tears shimmering in her eyes as she hid her face in his arms, a silence before he made a quiet promise to get Kohaku back._

"Damn it to hell…!" Inuyasha rubbed his face. "I shouldn't have ever let you two join teams with us. Its like with Amaya all over again…and once _fucking_ again it's my fucking fault!"

Kirara let out a mix of a disagreeing growl and soothing meow, turning her head to nuzzle Inuyasha's.

Sango stared at the nekomata, then back at the hanyou. "…who's Amaya?" she finally dared to ask.

Inuyasha finally lifted his head, locking eyes with her, and she tried hard to stifle a gasp. Never had she seen eyes so full of tragedy, of an unspeakable pain, of such _self-loathing._ Especially on someone like _Inuyasha,_ the strong hanyou, the one you could trust to be reliable.

"…did you honestly think I was always paired up with Miroku?" he finally said, voice conveying all the pain, all the secrets he hated to keep. "I had a partner before him. The best one I could ever have. We were a damn-great team. Other hunters knew that, hell, _we_ knew that."

"And your partner was a girl named Amaya," Sango interjected, connecting the dots.

Inuyasha let out a humorless laugh. "Yeah, Amaya was my partner. She was- she _is_ my best friend."

 _Best friend._ When Sango thought 'best friend' and 'Inuyasha' the closest thing that came to mind was Miroku. To discover it was actually someone else…

"What is she like?" Sango hadn't noticed she was rubbing his shoulder soothingly, but she wanted to provided the support and comfort Inuyasha gave her when she told him about Kohaku.

 _A warm hand on her back, rubbing it soothingly as she tried her best to not cry._

He finally smiled - a small one, but genuine and his eyes lit up just a bit. And with that, the dam broke and all the things he wanted to tell her but didn't coming out. "She's stubborn and intelligent and always right. She's a complete flirt and _knows_ she's beautiful and flaunts it, and God she has a _temper_ , don't ever piss her off…" The smile widened. "But she's kind and protective of the people she loves, and I've _never_ met a more selfless person. She can hate your guts and hope your shit stays up your ass but will help if you need it. She's good with kids…she never should suffer through anything…"

"She sounds like a person I would like," Sango offered.

"You're a lot like her," Inuyasha admitted. "I hope you would like her," he continued, his smile slowly fading. "That's why…that's why I tried my best to help you."

 _I'm like her?_ Sango thought, eyes wide. Now some of Inuyasha's early actions made sense now - how he would make her eat, how her temper didn't surprise him one bit.

"What…what happened to her?" she asked hesitantly. "You said her name…" _What happened since then?_

Inuyasha was silent, and Kirara nudged his head again, nuzzling it gently. He pet her own head, murmuring a thanks. "She's still alive if you're wondering. We…well, we were looking into these same demons. She…she was captured like Kagome. When I found her, they had taken over her mind."

"No…" Sango whispered, horrified. "They didn't make her…did they?"

Inuyasha chuckled, the sound void of mirth. "They tried to make her kill me. I couldn't fight back, I _wouldn't._ She's my best friend, I'd rather…"

 _He'd rather kill himself,_ Sango finished in her head. _Just like I would with Kohaku._

"She was ready to stab me," Inuyasha continued quietly. "Then…her eyes…" He swallowed tightly.

"…oh," Sango murmured, somehow grabbing his hand. "Inuyasha…"

"I don't know how," he strangled out. "But she wouldn't do it. She refused. Her entire body was shaking, her expression void of emotions but her eyes holding all the terror, and her eyes were watery but the tears wouldn't fall. And…she…she stabbed herself as the knife went down."

Sango finally hugged him tightly, stroking his hair. So many things made sense now. Why he freaks out when Kagome and herself bleed. Trying his hardest to memorize all the weapons an enemy had, and would go berserk if any of his friends got injured.

"She's a hanyou," he murmured. "A demonshifter."

Her arms tightened. She knew of demonshifters. Demons able to shift from animal demon to another, but lose enough blood and they die. A hanyou demonshifter would be able to lose more blood, but not by much.

"If it weren't for her sister…" Inuyasha sighed. "She barely survived. I left, to-to make sure it didn't happen again. I haven't seen her in years."

Sango knew how Kagome would react to Inuyasha's reasoning - _"You idiot! Imagine how she must feel over you leaving so suddenly! Why didn't you ask her what she wanted you to do, huh?"_

And while Sango wanted to agree with mind-Kagome, she couldn't even argue with him about his logic. She would've done the same for sure for any of her friends…she would do the same for _Kohaku._ But still…

"Do you miss her?" she whispered.

It wasn't until Kirara meowed and licked Inuyasha's injured chest that he replied. "Every day. Pretty pathetic, eh?"

"I won't let what happened to Amaya happen to Kagome," Sango whispered, squeezing him gently. "Neither will Miroku. And neither will _you_. Okay?"

"…feh. 'Course not. That's stupid."

 _That's the Inuyasha I know._ Sango smiled.

###

Kagome was _not_ possessed and they were able to get her back in time, and Sango watched with pride how Inuyasha and Kagome were often sneaking out together at night, returning later with Kagome's swollen lips and Inuyasha's mess of hair.

 _"I knew you'd be a biter," Sango snickered as she nudged Inuyasha. "And I bet that she has a few hickeys too."_

 _"Careful, I've heard Miroku's a cuddler," Inuyasha retorted, his ear flicking to the backseat - Kagome was still reading and she was always in her own world when she had a book in her hands, and Miroku was still taking a nap._

 _"Shut up."_

Sango bit back a giddy smile. Her two best friends were finally together and she couldn't be happier. _(and she didn't stop to consider when she started to consider Inuyasha a best friend)_

Especially with what she was planning on doing to make one of her friends even happier than he already was.

Sango practically insisted that they stop at a town while on the road, and since Miroku was driving and Sango had Miroku wrapped around her finger, they did. They stayed in a hotel instead of a motel this time, and Sango enjoyed the comfortable bed and TV.

It figures, with their luck, that as soon as they were getting comfortable a demon crashed through their window. Kagome was glad to show her disdain about the situation for Sango.

"Come on!" Kagome complained. "I was undressing for a real bath for once!"

"Throw on some shitty outfit, then!" Inuyasha yelled, grabbing his still-sheathed Tetsusaiga and attacking the demon. Sango ducked a spike coming towards her from the demon, depending on Kirara or Miroku to save Inuyasha.

The pervert was the one who did, seeing as Kirara's transformed state was too big for the hotel room, and since the bill was already going to be so large because of the broken window…

Another demon appeared to help the other, and Sango cursed. _This wasn't supposed to happen._ "Inuyasha! Take one of them outside!" she yelled.

"Keh! I was _trying_! Your boyfriend's in the way!" Inuyasha couldn't use Tetsusaiga's full power in the room, so he used brute strength, tackling the demon and falling outside, through where the window used to be.

"Kirara!" Sango called, and the nekomata followed the hanyou she considered her own side-master out the window, transforming midair. Sango followed, jumping onto Kirara and keeping a firm hold onto Hirakotsu. She saw Inuyasha below, fighting and dodging, and she willed Kirara to go faster. _Don't you die, you stubborn dog!_

Halfway there, she saw another nekomata - male, by the huge broad body and black markings on his body - landing near Inuyasha. The rider jumped down and went to help, the long golden hair practically flying behind her in a her haste to help. Sango hid her smirk as she, too, landed. _That was a pleasant surprise._

Sango went to stand next to the second passenger of the nekomata - a girl with shoulder-length golden blonde hair with a streak of red tied in a braid, grey eyes with an amazing outfit with a skirt to die for. "Was it hard to get her here?"

"She's been itching for a fight for a week, so not really. The real fight just adds to it," the girl answered, watching Inuyasha and the woman fight. "I haven't seen them like this for a while. It's nostalgic."

They _were_ a very good team, and she was impressed with the woman's fighting style - somehow she was able to be on the offensive and not get one hit on her. Seeing how most of the demons were dead, Sango smiled and threw Hirakotsu, destroying the ones left. "Inuyasha!" She ran towards him.

The girl ran to the woman. "Sister!"

Neither of them responded, staring at each other. Sango _finally_ got her first good look at her.

She had waist-length golden hair with wide honey-amber eyes like Inuyasha's, showing her demon heritage, with nearly-but-not-quite tanned brown skin with freckles. She wore jean shorts that reached mid-thigh, with ankle boots that had heel, with a black tank top under a red leather jacket (a _male_ jacket, Sango noticed.)

"Amaya…" Inuyasha whispered.

"Inuyasha," Amaya's voiced wavered, and she took a hesitant step forward, as if she was unsure of what to do.

He suddenly took off towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his face in her neck. "I…I…" he tried, for once vulnerable and scared and hesitant.

"It's okay," Amaya soothed, unshed tears in her eyes. "It's okay, I forgive you, I understand…" She buried her face in his neck.

"I missed you," he whispered. "Bitch."

"I missed you too, jackass."

Sango smiled at them, even as Amaya's sister went to stand next to her. "Thanks again for getting her here, Azami."

Azami shook her head. "I should be thanking you, for contacting me. I grew up knowing those two were a good team, and practically family. Family that flirts. _A lot_."

Sango laughed, breaking the semi-silence around them, and Inuyasha and Amaya broke away. "Sango? Did you…set this up?" Inuyasha asked in disbelief.

"Sis?" Amaya rose an eyebrow at her half-sister.

Azami smiled innocently. "Sango planned all this out, I just followed along."

Amaya turned to Sango, gold eyes so much like Inuyasha's but with something _there_ that made Sango fidget. _Does she not like how I played her into coming here?_

The male nekomata that Amaya and Azami had traveled on walking over to Sango, studying her before licking her cheek - which ended up going into her hair.

Amaya's eyes softened and she laughed. "Kiran likes you, and you all know what they say - a nekomata has great judges of characters."

Kirara meowed in agreement, while Kiran transformed into a kitten and jumped into his mistress' arms, purring.

"You continue to be the spoiled nekomata I remember," Inuyasha snorted, scratching behind one of Kiran's ears. "You never change, not since I gave you to Amaya, you brat."

Kiran meowed and snuggled into Amaya's jacket. Sango watched the scene, smiling softly _(she just couldn't stop smiling not when Inuyasha was happy)_ before turning around to go back to the hotel. "Come on, Kirara."

"Sango, hold up! Wait!"

Surprised, she turned back around. _He should be concentrated on his friend! The one he hasn't seen for years! What's he doing talking to me?_ "Inuyasha? What's wrong?"

"I need to know…" he started after a few minutes, eyes on her. "Why?"

Sango blinked. _Why? Why what?_

Reading her expression, he continued. "Why did you get Azami to bring Amaya here?"

Oh. Now she understood.

 _Why_ did _I do that? There's a lot of reasons. He missed her, and felt guilty for something that wasn't his fault. They were each other's first priority for a long time - and maybe still are. He deserves it after all the she he went through. There's a lot of reasons…_

. _..but I know the main reason why._

Sango reached over and grabbed his hand, squeezing it. "Because I care for you and want you to be happy. Because you're one of my best friends."

Inuyasha's eyes widened slightly at the words 'best friends' and he stared at her, silent, before pulling her into a hug. "Thank you," he murmured.

Sango caught Amaya's eyes staring at them, and the demonshifter hanyou's lips split into a wide grin - toothy with a bit of fang, but happy for her long-lost friend and urging Sango to hug him back.

And hug him back she did.

###

 _Knock, knock._ "Can I come in?"

"Keh." Sango winced - that was his slowly-freaking-out 'keh'. This was _not_ good.

Opening the door, Sango stepped in just as Amaya looked up. "Sango, I need to check the music. Can you…?"

"Sure, no problem."

Amaya gave her a beam and stood up from the couch, leaning down to kiss Inuyasha's forehead before rushing out to make sure no one had screwed up the music…again. The demonshifter hanyou blamed Miroku, as did Sango.

Inuyasha stood up, too, his entire body tense. Sango walked over, heels clicking on the tiled floor before stopping in front of him. Inuyasha had always been a head taller than her, and in heels she barely reached eye-level. Reaching out, she fixed his red tie, leaving it level and straight. Then she fixed the red rose on his lapel, smoothing the creases in his jacket. "You look good."

Inuyasha fidgeted. "Keh." He was wearing a tuxedo - black dress pants, a white button up shirt under a white vest, his tie under the vest. Over the vest was his black tux jacket, with a red rose pinned to the lapel.

"I'm serious," she insisted. "What's wrong?"

"Keh, nothing." Inuyasha looked down at her hands - which were fixing his jacket now - and saw the gleam on her left ring finger. "Nice ring."

Sango didn't even bother rolling her eyes at the obvious topic change. "Yeah. I'm glad you helped Miroku choose one."

"The lech wanted to buy you a huge ass ring with five different diamonds," Inuyasha snorted. "Said you only deserved the best."

Sango wrinkled her nose. "That sounds unnecessary and expensive. I love this one, and thanks to you I have it." A simple engagement ring with a small topaz in the center and swirls and waves ingrained into the bronze ring. "Guess you know me as well as I know Kagome, huh?"

Sango fondly remembered a nervous Inuyasha asking for her opinion on rings, and her guiding him to the right one.

"Feh. Duh." Inuyasha looked at the clock anxiously. "…Sango?"

"Hmm?"

"Since you're the maid of honor and all, have you…"

"…seen Kagome?" she finished, stepping back and inspecting him. "Yeah. You're going to hold your hair up in a ponytail, okay?"

He was silent, letting her reach up and quickly snap his hair into a high ponytail. "She's beautiful, and just as nervous as you are," she continued.

"K-keh! I'm not nervous! I'm…" Inuyasha trailed off. "I'm…not sure if Kagome will want to-"

"Stop right there," Sango said sharply, grabbing a forelock and tugging him down to be level with her. "Kagome _will_ want to marry you as a half-demon. In fact, _she does._ Okay? She loves you, idiot, and you love her. You are _not_ a half-breed; you're a good person and _deserve_ this. So does she."

"Sango-"

"Got it?"

Inuyasha stared at her, before smiling and nodding. "…feh."

Sango laughed. "Now come on, it's nearly time for you to go to the altar. Don't try to make out with her at the kiss, okay?"

"Keh, don't tell me what to do."

Kirara poked her head into the room and ran to Inuyasha, leaping into his arms and licking his face, Kiran closely following to do the same thing. "Kirara! Kiran!" Inuyasha complained, moving his face away. "Stop it!"

Sango giggled. _My strange hanyou best friend. What would I do without you?_


End file.
